Tuesday, December 29, 2009

How Cate is Doing

What a miracle worker she has been thus far. She can pick mommy's spirits up with one little sly smile. I just wish I could make her better understand what's about to happen -- why mommy cries so much lately, why mommy and daddy will be away from the house more than we ever have, that although we love her just as much, her sister is going to need a lot of attention. There's just a lot for her to understand that I wish I could explain to her.

I feel terrible -- I know I've been crying in front of her too much. She's started mimicking mommy: she'll come up to me with her face in hands pretending to sob. Thankfully, one little tickle and she's giggling like crazy. She caught me crying a couple days ago and when I looked up at her, she had taken all of her clothes off (diaper included), and was wearing daddy's tshirt from the laundry pile. Needless to say, she also knows how to snap mommy out of it too!

As well, there's plenty I wish I could get done with her before her sister's arrival ...especially the potty training. We're trying a couple new things that other parents have suggested, but the consensus seems to be: she'll tell us when she's ready. I'm also hoping we can get her in her big girl bed before her sister's arrival too. But I'm really hesitant to force changes on her, especially given the events of the next weeks.

One thing we're fairly certain of, she's really going to enjoy some time at daycare. We're still looking into affordable alternatives, but PCMC told us of the Jewish Community Center that offers discounted daycare for families with children hospitalized at PCMC. I'm hoping we can find out more about it during our next Echo appt. Bob's taken her to the gym's daycare a couple nights so far, and she absolutely loves it (her 1st time last week, she threw an unholy fit when it was time to go home!).

Thankfully, mom is coming to help out for a week in Feb, even though we're not certain of the timing of everything. At least she'll have her gramma here to spoil her for a while. And, our awesome neighbors have offered to help lend a hand with her too, and we are absolutely appreciative. She's so comfortable with everyone in the neighborhood; they're like 2nd family to her (and us, of course). I don't know what we'd do without them.

Man I just hope we "do right" by her with all that's going to happen with the baby. Our Cardiologist had told us that holding vigil while the baby is in ICU is unnecessary, that Bob and I need to take that time to be with Cate, get plenty of rest, recover from the delivery, and basically, get our stress under control. I don't know why, but I was a little surprised with that advice. I mean, she will be under the best care possible -- she'll have her own nurses assigned to her 24-7, but I guess I just can't fathom not being there with her. Anyway, I know that's certainly good advice where Cate's concerned, she's going to need as much of mommy and daddy as she can get while all this is happening.

About Me

Bob and I have been together for 12yrs now. In 2004, we made it official with a gorgeous wedding in Cancun. 3yrs later, we were blessed with the arrival of our Cate, a bright-eyed, sweet and mischievous little girl. Now we await the arrival of our 2nd little angel, but this one is entering our lives with a lot more worry. At 20 wks, they found she had a rare congenital heart defect: Tricuspid Atresia. We started this blog to help keep everyone updated on her progress, and to provide a bit of therapy for us. Thank you for taking the time to visit our blog!